Morgenstern

His angry words were met with some of her own, her eyes becoming cold and dead, their normal brilliant red fading into a a dead inferno. Because dying to me, sounded like a rather nice alternative, especially if I were able to die saving the lives of others." she said hoarsely. "I didn't show up in the first place because I wasn't even moving or sleeping for several days, unable to even get a spark of a happy thought to show itself. I was too wrapped up with my past. You're entirely right, I should have moved forward with my life, and make due with what I had now rather than what lied in the past." He looked at her, his anger flaring up as well. "Are you freaking retarded? You ever think what dying would do to those who care for you? Givng your life up for others isn't heroic. Its selfish. Its pointless." she mentioned how hard she thought on asking him to reveal what had happened. "Don't even lie, it was your intention all along. Thats all you wanted form me in the first place. Get what happened out and then leave." 

She latched onto his shirt, giving him the expectancy that she was going to hit him. "But I felt like I could have tried to help you work through any other emotions left behind by what happened to you..." she said, her rage dropping quickly into despair. "My whole life, I've dedicated my whole being to trying to help others, It's all I could do! Even after I had to watch my best friend die, I still wanted to help, but life just... wasn't so kind to me." He moved, prepared to say something, but her eyes faded, her arms dropping from his shirt. "Mina?" he would ask, his anger fading. She would write something on a piece of paper before crumpling to the blanket in front of him. "MINA!?" he would shout, his eyes widening. Panicking, he would bring his ear to her chest, but heard nothing. 'Oh wait. Virtual body. No heartbeat'. He would snatch the paper that she had written on. 'Riker's Edge, Floor 19.' He would scoop the girl up in his arms, which was surprisingly easy to do. His avatar's strength was at the point where he hardly felt any repercussions from carrying her. Ditching the items, he would leave them behind as he began walking to the teleport pad in the fourth floor. 

He stood in front of the door to the bar, staring up at the sign. Taking a breath, he would look down at Mina once more, the girl sound asleep. Her breaths were slow and calm. He freed one of his hands temporarily to open the door, pushing it open with his foot. Walking in to the bar, he would look around. His eyes would reach the counter where a girl was tending the counter. "Hello?" he would ask. 

With his assumed stance, he watched as Baldur would offer him a smile. "We can duel if you would like, but that's only going to teach you how to handle one-v-one PVP combat.What I am going to teach you is something you can even take out of the game." Jonathan frowned confused. 'I thought he was teaching me how to use my katana. I don't plan on using it back in the real world.' he thought to himself. He took his hand, removing it from the handle of his weapon. Baldur would stand, slowly walking around him, like a wolf stalking it prey. 'Is he trying to intimidate me?' "Calrex, came to me long ago, because he needed to win a spiritual fight. As you could imagine, he doesn't have much to fear when it comes to a battle of HP and energy, but he didn't want to defeat his enemy, he wanted to use his sword to communicate with an old friend and bring them back to the light."

Jonathan would offer a puzzled look. "A battle without the purpose of defeating the enemy? I haven't heard of such a thing before" Why would Calrex want to fight someone to just show what he meant? An odd thing to do. He listened to the man speaking of more terms that would end up killing him trying to remember. All he knew was that his weird style was apparently an actual style. He had just used it to compensate for his lack of skill. He watched the man's demonstration without him using a sword art to increase his speed. The constant change in speed was kind of throwing him off as well. 

"There are many concepts that Iaido teaches, that Iaijutsu does not, and that's what I'm going to attempt to teach you. They'll help you develop the mentality I spoke of, but it will take time you and I to get to know each other and convey all the concepts. Calrex and I had the advantage of he and I already being very close, so I could tailor my lessons to him." The man would then reach into his inventory and toss him a wooded weapon. He would examine it first, an odd weapon to use. It didn't appear that it would deal any damage to the target either. "Come, tell me what brought you here. Share with me your struggles. Tell me of your failures, and I will know how to guide you were you seek to go. But tell me through your sword."

With those words, Baldur would begin his attack, swiping the wooden weapon in his direction. Taking a breath, Jonathan would parry the blow, twisting his body to swing the weapon around in a full circle, using the momentum to create a quick attack that would end up actually hitting the samurai.. 'I actually got him? I would not expect that in a million years. I better follow it up though, or it means nothing.'  Attempting to do what Baldur demonstrated earlier, he would quickly continue with a second quick attack, jabbing his bokken towards the man's ribs. 

First Round: 129382 CD:3 -> Quick Attack(Rock). Beats Baldur's Counterattack(Scissors)

Second Round: 129383 CD:1 -> Quick Attack(Rock)

His words were met with the girl slowly breaking down, her seriousness losing the battle until it completely crumbled, leaving her in a dwindling mess of tears. It was almost pathetic. It was his story, his demons. Not hers. He continued no further with his story, she wouldn't be able to handle it. 

 "... I... I'm S-s... So... So...S-s-sor... Sorry..!" He frowned, looking at her. What could she possibly feel sorry about? If she was feeling sorry for him, he didn't want her pity. At this point, he was on the verge of leaving. This was no date at all, he was tricked into coming with her honeyed words. She was whispering, her voice almost like someone as broken as he once was. 

"I-I sh-sh-should've b-been there f-f-for all of you..! I-I should have been strong enough to fight with you. I have no right to call myself a friend, much less be s-someone worth you caring for. If you want to leave, just go. I have no right to ask you to stay, but I ask that you listen to what I am about to say. You might have killed one person, but that still makes you a better person than me..! What you did was not out of greed, but out of fear and worry for your sister, and your desperate actions to get to her again. She was a hostage being held by him!" His expression darkened even further as his own anger began to rise. Despite what Baldur had taught him so far, he was no longer in control of his emotions. He didn't care if she wanted to justify his actions, but blaming herself for it all was absolutely ridiculous. 

"Shut up." he said warningly. He looked at her, a fierceness that hid in him being released by his eyes. "If you were there, you would have just gotten yourself killed. You get that? You not being there was a blessing in itself. What you have no right to do is blame yourself for what happened! Yeah, you could have been stronger, but what difference would it have made? You think one extra f***ing player would have made a difference against the forty players that ambushed us? It was planned out perfectly by two high-leveled players. The outcome would have remained the same, the Ascendants fall and the frontliners are seen as weak and unable to protect those weaker than them. Who I care for is up to me, don't for a second pretend you know me, or what I've been through." 

He shook his head, calming himself. "Quit fretting over something that has happened months ago. Focus on yourself and what you have now. I know personally when you lose yourself in the past that you lose everything. Face your demons and move on." 

"Jon, I know you're probably not legally able to drink IRL, which is probably why you're laughing like thats. It shouldn't stop you from enjoying it while you're here." He flashed a smile at her. He was close to the age, but had yet to come of age. "I'm assuming you aren't legal for alcohol either?" He would watch as she took a drink, her face unchanging from the drink. 'How?'  "Personally I don't really drink too much, but it's better than the crap that they call the normal drinks here. It's player made, and it's based off of spiced whiskey, which my friend suggested for such a cold night." "Hmm. I have gotten along fine with Milk and water up to now. However, it sounds like you've made a pretty good since the Ascendants disbanded." he joked. Violet had given the information of whether it was a guy or girl... not that it mattered to him of course. 

He smiled when she mentioned that she was as equally ungifted at cooking as he. He was also surprised to hear about the music portion. "You can play music as well? I am gifted in the piano" he kept his happiness private when she mentioned "Rosario". "She didn't question you randomly requesting a bunch of food for no reason?" he would give her a chuckle. 

 "Now, I'm going to be a bit blunt with you, and I'm sorry in advance if it hurts your feelings..." He frowned. 'Wait. What?' "But I want you to tell me everything that led to what happened to you between the short period between the fall of the CA, and the actual event of it happening, to cause such a change in you, Jon. I want you to be as honest as possible. I know you probably don't want to talk about it like this, and certainly not here of all places, but this is for me to reassure myself that nothing else like that will happen, and that you're mentally okay. I've seen too many people go mad because they killed someone and didn't ask for any help... It's all I'm asking of you, Please...!"

He watched as she ordered a steak and... quite a bit of food actually. He chuckled and was a bit intimidated. He wasn't even sure if he could eat all of that food. She looked to him and offered to pay for her own stuff. "You're good, i'll pay because who knows when you'll have to stop eating. I'm surprised no NPC's have went fishing for some guards over my cursor. It'll happen eventually." he looked to the NPC waitress with a warning glance. "I'll just have the Nimbus Burger and some fries. Thanks" He would bring his attention back to the girl. 

"So about... Gulp, him... well He came to my inn I was staying before, and after that, I have seen him there, And well When I was going some low-level quests on floor 1 He helped me one time as a Boss monster spawned gulp out of nowhere" Jonathan frowned. "He helped you out? That doesn't sound much like someone who'd end up trying to kill you." 

"So on floor 10 I well met Hazado, and well I seemed to irritate him a bit, so I left him, then He came back and Omniga jumped out and smiled, saying something like seems he still can't protect people at all, This will haunt him forever," He would lock onto this phrase. "So you think he was trying to pull revenge on Hazado? Or baiting him out for a fight." 

You knew Haz, It seemed he knew you at least."  He would shrug. "I met him once at his wedding. I didn't know him too well" He didn't want to admit that he was unfeeling of the death, he was used to losing things and this was something minor. 

Violet would assure him that she would not have taken him into town. Her other options were the waterfall caverns on the 21st floor, or her friends bar. He snickered. 'This girl is gonan end up making me some kind of alcoholic. I'm not even twenty-one yet' he thought to himself. 

"Jon, do you even want to enjoy what I brought here for us to have, or are you just going to keep treating me like a giant teddy bear?" He blinked. He was going to admit that he had been lost in the embrace and forgot that it actually was happening. "I-I'm sorry." he stammered out. He released her, her attention returning to the items that she had brought for the date. 'Why am I so desperate for something as a hug? I haven't hugged anyone since I came here, so why would I want it so badly?' It was unknown to him how hungry he had been for positive attention int he last few months. 

As she opened all of the packages of the food, his eyes would widen. "Did... did you make all of this? I didn't know that you could cook?" If she had cooked it, he was interested in knowing whether it was a profession learned skill or something that she had learned to do. He was an alchemist, but due to his experience in the real world he could still almost flawlessly play the piano. He looked, his eyes unwavering from the food. 'She doesn't expect us to both be able to eat this? I don't even like pie.' She noted to the drinks, saying that he had better be prepared to drink it. He would put on a confident smile. "Some silly drink isn't going to take me down, watch" he would wink, grabbing the glass from the ground. He brought it to his lips and poured a swallow-full into his mouth and swallowed. 

His eyes would widen and he would immediately set down the drink. A cough would rise from his lungs as the burning met his lungs. 'Where the hell did the pain sensors go?' he asked himself. After he was able to compose himself again he would look back to Violet. "See. Like a champ" feeling and looking like and idiot was his strong suit. He grabbed a couple of the crackers and began to munch on them, trying to keep himself before he said something stupid and scared her away. 

He smiled as he sat down, facing the girl. "Mou, took you long enough Jon!" He rolled his eyes, replying, "Sorry, I was a bit far away. I promise I hurried over". He rubbed the back of his neck with his hand and she began to speak. "You ready to get this starte....!" He frowned as she cut off, and brought his attention back to her from the assortment of drinks that had caught his attention.  "... Your... cursor is... Green again..?" He smiled. ""Wouldn't have come here if it wasn't. What if it was going to be in town?" he would jokingly. His true reason was so that nobody would know her as the girl who went on dates with murderers. Her face caught a wide grin and she tackled him with a hug, knocking him down so that he was laying with his back on the blanket. 

The warmth from her embrace made him smile. It was the same embrace that helped give him strength that day. "Thanks. I went through a lot to get there. I had to make sure that I was deserving of it first." His face became a little redder as he noticed that she was literally on top of him at this point. 'I think this moved a little too fast' he cringed to himself. 'That's my fault I suppose'. Enjoying the comfort, he would close his eyes, enjoying the warmth from the blanket and Violet's embrace. 'Even if its going to fast, is it wrong to be happy?' he would ask himself. 'If it makes me happy, does that mean Im going to lose it like last time? Is she going to be ripped away from me too?' His embrace would noticeably tighten. 'No. I won't let that happen. Mine.' 

He put his hand back onto the hilt of his recently sheathed weapon. He supposed he would look silly after sheathing his weapon after every attack, but as long as he would get some form of damage on the enemy they couldn't bag on him too hard. He heard Macradon praise his plan and he would smile. "Just doin what I can" Turning back to his enemy, he would dash forward, his hand on the hilt of his weapon at all times, preparing to strike. A crackle would emit from the weapon and as he got into range, he pulled the weapon on his opponent. The lightning on his blade causing a brilliant flash as he struck his opponent. The blade cut much deeper into the rind this time around, a crackle shooting up its body. Leaping away, he would sheathe his weapon and turn back. "Should find out if its gaining mitigation from status effects or criticals now" he would say, noticing the pattern of the ability so far. 

"To be the great pumpkin, or not to be. That is not the question" he would say quietly, stiffling a laugh. 

ID: 129059 BD:8 PARALYTIC VENOM ACTIVATED!
DMG: 22*15=330-200=130 DMG

PLEASE CHANGE ZANDRA'S STATS AS I FINISHED BEFOREHAND

Morgenstern's Attirre ^
                                      

NOTE: Morgenstern is Green cursored in this thread. 

The blonde stood on the nineteenth floor in the boss room, practicing the attacks Baldur had taught him. He had been here for several hours, as soon as the sun had reached its peak in teh sky. It was already evening, the night air bringing a crisp air to the nineteenth floor. He leaned against the head of the skull of Tanos. He breathed out. He had been working himself half to death and he was rather exhausted. He had kept to himself and refused to make plans as he waited for Mina to message him. It had been a couple of days since he had heard from her. He had received her name from her. 'Violet' a rather odd name for a Japanese girl. He wondered if she was from America like himself.  He brought his fingers to his lips, reddening instantly. 'How did I muster up that kind of courage? I did what Baldur taught me but that has hardly anything to do with it. Does it?' He was preparing to call it a day and head to an inn when he received a message. 

'Mina' he instantly thought and thrashed to open the messaging. He read it, finding the details of the date. "The fourth floor? An odd place to put it" he said aloud to himself. He quickly moved up to the twentieth floor adn then took that teleportation pad to the fourth. As he got there, he would equip some lighter winter clothes and a scarf. It would take him a few minutes to reach his destination and the prize was well worth the walk. 

Sitting there was an odd picnic blanket set up with wine glasses placed on top of it. Sitting on the blanket was Mina, who seemed to be far better dressed than him. He sat there stunned for a moment, a pinkish hue reaching his cheeks. "H-Hey" he would stammer. He would walk forward to the blanket and look down at her. Flashing a smile, he would move down to the blanket and sit on top of it, feeling an embrace of warmth immediately. "What kind of blanket is this? Its soo.... warm" He was kind of worried. He hoped the Blanket didn't put him to sleep and have him ruin their date. 

@tricolor_mina

He would watch carefully as Baldur demonstrated a summary of what he knew. Explaining how an understanding of each stance was important, and even go into depth of how they differed within the game and their uses. His demonstrations were quick and hard to follow, but the samurai displayed his ability to chain his attacks rather fast. His teachings were fast and brisk and he felt like he was within a classroom, desperately trying to absorb what the teacher had to say. He watched as the man sat on his knees in the traditional Japanese seiza, something he had heard of when studying the country of Japan and learning the Japanese language. When the man gestured for him to follow suit, he did so, taking a rudimentary seiza. 

"Shifting from stance to stance to stance as quickly and accurately as possible is something that comes with time and effort. It will set you apart from the average player who hesitates, or someone who has only recently mastered the katana. What will set you at the pinnacle is the sharpness and accuracy of your mind. Your will. Western traditions often have heroes wielding magic swords. Excalibur. Durandal. Gram. The hero gets a sword with power. In the eastern tradition, any weapon became magical in the hands of a master. Sure there are swords like Kusanagi, Muramasa, and the Masamune, but Musashi won his most famous fights with a bokken, a wooden sword. The idea is that one who has trained his mind as a weapon makes any sword magical."

He would take in his words. His meaning was that strength came from the user, not the weapon. Within the world of Aincrad, he wasn't sure if said notion was true but the man's point was clear. "Mastering the mind and emotions is something I have tried working on for a very long time. Everytime I think I've got it, I lose control" he hated to admit it but it was true. Everytime he put forth effort to control himself, some twisted event found itself in his life. He would watch as the man would face him, his eyes daring with their ocean blue color. 'Is this a no word challenge? I don't know whats proper for samurai's to duel. I think I have to... bow?' He brought his top end down to the ground, showing his respect. Leaping off the ground, he would bring his hand to his hilt once more, staring back at the man. "This... is what you wanted right? Sorry if I took your expression the wrong way".

'So this is it huh? The end of the story to the once symbol of protection. Paladin of the Celestial Ascendants. What a joke.' He thought. Happy endings didn't happen, not in the real world and not here. "Jonathan" a voice heeded him. Opening his eyes, he wouldn't find the world of hatred and violence that was his mind, but a place with a clear sky, the ground reflecting the beauty above. He was sitting within the sky. In front of him stood Baldur, a smile resting on his face. Warmth spread from his face. "The power of good is shown, not by triumphantly conquering evil, but continuing to resist, even when facing certain defeat". Baldur's figure would appear directly in front of him, grabbing his shoulders. The warmth spread into him as he looked to meet the man's eyes. "We are all works in progress, even me, though I have less time left to make progress than you. Repent. Repentance is good, we all need it. Nobility of character isn't being better than someone else, it's being better than we were yesterday. It's never being satisfied with the progress we have made. It is always striving to be a better man." 

Baldur would fade from his vision, and Jonathan would tear up. A new figure now stood in front of him, a tall man in heavy armor, black hair and a beard. "Feel as you like about me, but I would have been sad to lose you. You have another chance now. I know you well enough to know that someday, you'll make the best of that" He looked at the smiling eyes of Shield. He had always felt inferior when placed next to Shield, but deep down he knew that he could trust the man with everything. 

Shield would fade with a smile and a girl with long dark hair. Hestia, the leader of the Aincrad Police Department. His successor as the protector of those weaker. "I know the heroes don't win Jonathan, but that won't stop me from using every bit i can to catch up to you guys on the frontline. I will push myself to try and reach their, but doing so carefully. Getting to the frontlines means nothing if I die on the way up towards there. I won't be able to help you then, and also more importantly I won't be able to help people that I run into." He smiled. She had come so far since he had met her at the monument of life. 

Hestia would vanish as a cloaked figure would take her place. The figure removed his hood, revealing his own best friend. "Jonathan you do remember that the reason we both started this guild was to help others, not push them out of the way so we could rise above.  It's our job to help those who can't make it on their own to move forward.  If you lost sight of that, you need to take a moment to do so.  Regardless of whether or not it's an adult, a child, or an npc even." Through it all, Itzal had remained fixated on their goal. He was glad to have him as a friend and thanked Aincrad for allowing him to meet the man. 

Itzal vanished, now standing before him was an angry Hikoru, a broken pair of glasses crushed in his hands. "People will die Morg.... No, Jon... People will die here, and there is nothing we can do. Things will never go as planned, or else this game would be far too easy. But don't let it get to you, or your anger will feed you, and your depression will drive you mad." He had always looked up to Hikoru, who consoled him through the first drop in Jonathan's career. He hadn't spoken to him in forever, but Jonathan knew that he was still there even if out of sight. 

Hikoru vanished into the shadows, leaving Bahr the man he just recently met. The white-haired man offered him a katana, the one he currently used. Raikiri. "If you want redemption - and I mean truly want it - then prove it. This blade belonged to the one who reminded me the most of my best friend. He used it to atone for being largely inactive during the first years of this." Jonathan reached forward, taking the hilt of the weapon. Bahr's kindness was almost boundless, reaching out to someone he didn't even know and setting him on the right path. The blonde now sat on his knees, Raikiri resting in his right hand. Bahr would turn, walking and fading into the distance.

He sat there for a moment, before noticing a warmth spreading throughout his body. He looked down, to find Mina clinging to him, her grasp around him tight. 'Her again' he would think. "I just... I can't handle being alone like I've been lately, without any of you. You, Itzal, Kasier... all of you left me behind, intentional or not..." He had hurt her once, it would kill him even more to know that he did it again. The girl released him, giving him a warm smile. "Nothing beats a good cry when you need to vent, or get something off your chest! If you need to vent, I'm here to listen." The girl and her smile would fade, a tears welling in is eyes. He stood, the tears flowing freely. He might not be strong, but he was willing to work to become better. He wanted to the man Baldur envisioned. The leader Hestia and Itzal wanted him to be. The friend that Shield wanted him to be. The fighter that Bahr wanted to see. The strong that Hikoru expected. The beacon of Light Mina wanted. 

He closed his eyes, a smile coming to brighten his face. He took a breath, and opened them once more. He now once more stood in the realm of his own mind. He still remained attached to the cross of darkness, a massive attack from all four of the enemies tendrils snapping forward to pierce him all at once. A flash of light would appear and a shield would appear in front of him. His old shield, the Ascendants Protector. The tendrils would strike the shield but the shield would hold firm stopping the attack. "WHAT! Why are you fighting? There is nothing left to fight for!" The shield would fade, and the cross would disappear, effectively freeing him. "As long as they believe in me, there is always a reason to keep fighting."he would answer, his eyes shining confidently. 

He stepped forward, Raikiri crackling with electric energy. "Your friends don't care for you. You pushed them away." The blonde would smile. "And they forgave me." The former Paladin vaulted forward at the Demon, making a powerful slash that would strike through its body. The demon fell back, its anger apparent. Its rage was growing. "IT DOESN'T MATTER! You are still weak, a pathetic creature who can't even protect his guild. You failed them and you'll fail everyone else!" The Demon attacked with its Shadow Judgement, bringing the two-handed sword down at the Tank. "Why must I be strong, when my friends already believe in me?" He slashed forward with Raikiri, his sword cleanly cutting through the weapon shattering it on contact. The Demon would growl. "You're still a murderer going any distance to satisfy your endless greed. You're a monster!" The blonde breathed out. "Our mistakes of the past teach us right from wrong. They don't hold us back. I can't change the past, but I can alter the future. I will make it a better one. Scars don't heal, they tell us what to do differently." His words enraged the demon which sent forth its tendrils to pierce his chest once more. The new samurai leapt upwards, slashing downwards and cutting through all of the tendrils. "I'm Breakable. Thats what makes me unbreakable." 

He leapt forward, thrusting Raikiri into the demon's chest. "You can't kill me. As long as you know what you've done, there will be darkness." Jonathan would offer the demon a smile. "Of course not. Where there is light, there must be dark. You are what teaches me, makes me a better man. I can't hide from you, I can't kill you. We are one and the same." He removed the weapon from his enemy's chest. He would offer a hand. The demon would take his hand, its eyes returning to their normal blue color. The world around them would become lighter, much less violent than it was before. "It seems you've learned, Morgenstern" The world would fade around him, leaving him back at the Waterfall. 

@Baldur @Shield @Hestia @Itzal @Hikoru @Bahr @tricolor_mina

"It doesn't make sense why you would keep fighting anyway, you have nothing to fight for. You've pushed everyone away, out of your life. No one is left to care about you. The only thing they feel is pity." Jonathan got up onto his knees. "No..." the Demon would raise its hand, several spears of darkness forming around it. These spears fired forward, sprouting into his chest one by one. He fell onto his back, closing his own eyes. 'Maybe it would be easier to fall into the void. There's nothing left in me. He's right, the darkness in me is greater than the light that remains. There is no reason to keep the light on when it doesn't make a difference to the darkness.' 

The demon stepped forward, a dark cross appearing behind Jonathan that the darkness would place him on. The demon's eyes were wild, its power having grown immensely. A dark shadowy armor now covered its body, a blackened Judgement sat in his hands, four tendrils sprouted from his back, ready to strike forward and tear him apart. "Your light has died Morgenstern. This is all that is left for you. I trust you'll go without struggle. You're a burden to this world and those who walk beside you." 

The demon raised his weapon, preparing to slay him with Judgement. 

Jonathan would slowly push himself off the ground, coming once again into the Longpoint stance. "I will win. I have too." The demon went crazy with his own laughter. "You have to? This is absolutely pathetic. You have nothing, you are nothing. This change you think you've gone through is a facade, and you managed to fool even yourself."  The demon leapt forward, almost just materializing in front of him it was so fast. A black katana appeared in its hand that it would use to slash multiple times through his body. The onslaught would stop when the demon decided to stop. Falling to his knees, Jonathan would look down to the ground, broken and beaten. The Demon would sigh. "Doesn't look like you are long for this world. You are already being consumed by your own darkness". The blond would look down at his hands, splotches of black spreading like paint spilling. 'I can't help but know that everything he says is true. Its the truth. I've grown no stronger.' The demon would crouch down with a smile. Its eyes were completely black with red pupils in the center. "No fight left?"

Jonathan returned to his feet, taking a breath. He had to remain calm, he had to fight this monster. It was just saying words to get into his head. The words meant nothing. He was just spouting the words that he didn't want to hear. "I'm gonna be honest, I know you more than anyone. Are you really sure you are fit to start trying to be the good guy again? Are you sure that its safe for everyone? What makes you think you can protect them now? You're just putting their lives more in danger." Gritting his teeth, the blonde charged forward, earning a deadly smile from the demon. At lightning speeds, it kicked upwards, knocking him high into the air. the impact was almost enough to make him drop his weapon. The demon would appear above him, letting loose an array of serrated shadow blades that plunged into his chest. He hit the ground with a thud, knocking the air form the blondes lungs. 'He is tearing me apart, mentally. Not physically.' The demon smoothly landed on the ground with a smirk on its face. "Pathetic. Pick yourself up from the ground. Is this all the will the protector of Aincrad has to offer?"

"Orders form the same man that was responsible for killing your entire guild" The demon lashed out with its tendrils, tearing through Jonathan's avatar, red shards pouring into the air. He managed to lift his own weapon, blocking the next attack and giving him the chance to escape the onslaught. "I've made my mistakes, and everyday I am working to fix them." He took a breath. 'I have to stay clam. This monster knows my deepest darkness and is more than willing to unleash it on me.' He charged forward, making several swipes with his weapon which were all blocked by the tendrils form the demon. Its shadows were deeper and darker, as if the creature had become stronger since they had begun fighting. The demon would leap backwards with a smirk on its face. "You're sure you are overcoming your mistakes, your sins? I think you are just pushing them down deeper, ignoring them. Scars don't heal" The Demon vanished, appearing behind him and placing a powerful kick straight into his back, knocking him to the ground fifty feet away. "I don't think you've grown stronger. I don't think you've grown. You're still the same scared little boy that came a fought here over a year ago."

Giving the enemy no time to prepare itself, Jonathan would continue forth with his attack, moving in again, a his weapon sparking with energy. 'Ill finish this quickly, it shouldn't be a problem. After all i've been through, i can handle anything this guy throws at me' he told himself. He reached his opponent, still on the ground, and quickly brought his sword up to bring it down on the fallen opponent. His own vision flickered and sitting on the ground, a terrified face worn was Elsea. A scream emitted form the girl's throat and the blond hesitated, holding his stance in place. Jon's eyes widened, his face paling. His vision flickered and the demon sat in front of him again, two tendrils having sprouted from its back that it used like scorpion stingers to plunge into his chest. Thrown back from the attack, Jonathan would roll on the ground before he came to a stop. The demon would smirk as it stepped slowly over to him. "Decided killing this time wasn't worth the reward? You weren't greedy enough huh? You think i'm the demon here, but its just you, a monster who killed a defenseless girl to get what he wanted." Jonathan gasped for air as he stood, holding his sword. "I didn't... mean too" the blond said glumly. "Oh, you were just following orders huh?"

The blond held his weapon tight as the figure slowly walked towards him. A darkness billowed from the demon as a sword would appear in its hand, a replica of Judgement. The demon would charge forward, striking ferociously at him. The blonde would block the blows with his own weapon, staying mobile to try to move to the offensive side of the battle. This demon was stronger physically than any of the others before. He leapt away, creating distance between him and his opponent. "Do you really think you can win? You couldn't protect the others, what makes you think you can protect yourself?" Jonathan remained calm, holding his emotions firm as Baldur taught him. He didn't have a complete mastery, but he was better than before. He wouldn't be baited. Taking a deep breath, he would activate the <<Charge>> skill, surging towards his opponent. As eh reached his opponent, he would attack with one swift strike, a flash of light happening as he done so. The demon would block his attack but be thrown back from the attack, the replica Judgement breaking in the process. "I won't let you beat me. I'm stronger now. I came here out of my own volition to face you." 

The blonde exhaled the air that he had brought into his lungs. He would open his eyes, finding somewhere else entirely. He took a look around the world that he now rested in, it was far darker and twisted than it had been before. Previously the world had been dark, but still filled with a world with deadened grass and a dim light coming from multiple directions. No such light existed now, and neither did the four doors that had led him to each individual fight. A roll of thunder was heard and purple lightning flashed across the sky. "I know you're here" Jonathan would state plainly, his eyes shifting upwards after turning around. Sure enough a twisted version of himself would stand there with a smile playing on his own face. The smile was cold and unforgiving. "Everyone knows that their demons are there, but do they have the will to be able to withstand them?" The demon would vanish and appear on the opposite side of the blonde. Pulling out his katana, Jonathan would enter the Longpoint stance that Baldur had taught him. His demon would smirk and tell him, "You only know how to solve your problems through that sword now huh? You think you've changed but you haven't." 

It was a good half-hour before he finally reached his destination. Sighing, he would take a moment to see the water. The stars in the sky brilliant cast their light onto the water, bringing a certain beauty to the water that was hard to find. He stood on one of the flat rocks that rested around the small area and noticed his hand was trembling. He grabbed it with the other hand in an attempt to gain control. 'Scared? Why? This is something I must to do. Its something I HAVE to do.' He took a seat on the rock and stared at the waterfall for a few more moments. "I can do this. I am stronger, better than what I was before. What more could be waiting on the other side that wasn't there last time." his words of encouragement were almost entirely wasted on himself. He slowly shut his eyes, slowing down his breathing. Within a couple of minutes his hands stopped trembling. He needed to focus like Baldur taught him, and gain control of the reigns to his emotions. He took a sharp inhale of breath. 

The blonde stood in the center of the main settlement of the sixth floor. It was dark and being such there was not much commotion. His cheeks still burned with a pinkish color from his encounter with Mina. 'How did it even come down to that? How did I just accept it that quickly?' He adjusted the weapon on his hip. If he wanted to become a better person for her and his friends, he had to fight the thing that stood in his way. He needed to face the boundary itself. Moving forward, he would have only one destination in mind. The waterfall. It had been almost a year and a half since he had last visited, facing the troubles that he had brought over from the real world. This was something he was scared of doing, but it was something he had to do before he would ever find himself of redemption. It was a requirement to earning back his green cursor, to earning Mina's hand, the smiles of his friends, and the position he desired in this world. 

After he agreed to the date the girl's jaw dropped with shock as she looked at him in wild bewilderment. "W-wait, you mean it?! are you being serious jon?" he watched as her glass slipped from her hand and broke into several pixelated fragments. "Oh dear" he would state plainly. He would poke one the shards as it parted off into the air. He turned his attention back to the girl. "Are you really willing to do that..?" He would chuckle. "You do realize that its a double edged sword. You have to go one a date with me."  Putting on a smooth smile he would look away. "However. I'm sorry to say that It will have to be after a bit. There are some things that I need to take care of. I can't reciprocate your feelings appropriately unless I deal with those things. We can have the date afterwards, when and wherever". 

His heart patted along when he thought of what to do next. If there was anything he learned in the real world from google searching, it was to leave a girl wanting more. He would take a deep breath, remembering what Baldur had taught him to train his own emotions from getting out of hand. "I'll prove i'm willing" he leaned back forwards, putting his arms on each side of the girl that sat in front of him. He closed his eyes, pressing his lips to her own, holding it there for a few seconds. Afterwards, he would stand up and turn around. "It was good to see you" he would say, his voice slightly higher pitch than normal. He turned to hide the extremely red hue that covered his face. Afterwards, he would walk away from the area, leaving the girl to herself. 

-Jon exits the thread-

He watched as she turned towards him, her face a strange mixture of emotions that made him wonder if somewhere up her ancestry was a chameleon. 'It seems I have said the wrong thing' he thought to himself. "E-eh..? Y-you can't choke on things in the game Jon." Her blush faded a little bit, and he cracked up with laughter. "Well shoot, I must be pretty talented then" he noted aloud. He had choked on several various food items. A few moments of silence would ensue before she would break it. "I... I think I actually figured out the favor I wanted to ask you... will you... will you go out on a date with me..?" 

For a few moments, Jonathan's facial expression remained the same as it was before. Then it hit him. Immediately, his face would reach a hue that would match the girl's in front of him. "HUH"  is the first sound he would be able to produce. "A date? Like a date date? Like the kind that couples go on?" Flustered, the blond would lean back, away from the girl that sat just in front of him. 'Oh my god, what just happened? What do I do? What do I say?' A couple of seconds would ensue where he mentally screamed at himself. 

'Smooth Jonathan.' he would have to tell himself. His blush would fade and he would close his eyes and take a deep breath. "Mina. I think that would be lovely. I would love to go on a date with you." Having resorted to a battle mindset, he would calm himself and focus on his one target, removing all extra thoughts. An odd place to be using such a mindset, but he seemed to think that it would work phenomenally. 

As he watched the girl closely, he noticed that she seemed befuddled that he would tell her that she could share her real life experiences. "No offense, but uhm... It's not exactly something that I'm proud of..." He grinned. "The last month of my life has been filled with things I'm not proud of. There is nothing that you could say that would make me think any less of you. You have to remember, everything that we do, everything that we've done, it affects who we are. Whatever happened, made you... well you." he honestly could not tell if having killed Elsea had changed him in anyway, he hadn't talked to as many people he supposed. 

He watched as the girl's face randomly became beet red and she buried it within her hands. One of his eyebrows raised as did his confusion. "Are you okay? You're not choking on the drink are you?" His face was filled with concern, but he had no idea what action to take. He remained frozen, starting at the girl's who's face as almost as red as her eyes. 'What is happening? Her mood swings are absolutely off the charts! Shes really happy, but is crying. Shes depressed, and then happy.... I can't keep up' he thought to himself. 

As he stood, waiting for the right time to draw his weapon with an attack. However, Baldur waved his katana at Jonathan and asked him to just focus with the main portion of the battle instead of the beginning of it. The blonde would give a confident nod, acknowledging the samurai's words. He would pull the weapon from its sheathe, a satisfying metal hiss accompanying the action. Baldur brought his own katana above his head, as if he were prepared to smite down onto a target. Baldur would introduce it as the high guard and noted that it was normal for someone to enter this stance for the extra power. The blonde would bring his own katana

He watched as Baldur lowered his point to the ground in a stance that he called the Fool's Guard, which was more of a baiting trick. When he mentioned power generation, Jonathan's face would become one of confusion. "So, does that mean its pointless? If there is something better, is the fool guard actually a good technique within Sword Art Online?"

He watched as Baldur entered a third and final stance, pointing the sword directly at him. "This is the most neutral guard, the most natural stance, and is called Chudan, or Longpoint guard. This creates space, and gives you the most defensible position because you can move into any other stands easily. It is also, for our intents and purposes, the easiest position to move from into any of our sword arts." this seemed to be the most important to Jonathan. He watched as the man would shift from the Longpoint position into a sword art and then suggested practicing coming out of that instead of constantly striking a rock. 

The blonde would enter a rudimentary Longpoint stance and quickly make the motion to activate the San Ge sword art. After the attack finished, he would return to his stance. With what Baldur had said, he beleived he could make progress, but it would take some time to perfect. "Hmm.... What am I gonna do with my rock then?" he would ask half-jokingly. 

He watched as her face quickly changed, the rapid changing almost confused with it. Her face seemed become slightly more pink for a second and then quickly became somber. "I've been so focused on worrying myself half to death about you two that I would've made myself sick had this been the real world." His smile faded, become a mixture of confusion and worry. He had done that. She was the walking example of how even the smallest actions had large impacts. "I know you guys disappeared for a reason, but to completely drop off the face of the earth and flat out ignore messages from friends, and stop talking to the people you care for..?" He grit his teeth. "I'm sorry. I had turned off the messaging feature entirely for a good period of time. I also had disabled the friend list so I couldn't be tracked by anyone. I was so far lost, I didn't want to be found." he would state plainly. He skipped over the part that he had wanted to die himself for some time. 

When she mentioned the real life, his eyes became full of concern as he looked at her. He took a slow and steady sip of his drink before he scooted closer until their legs were touching. "Remember what you said about talking to people? If something from that world is still holding you down, I think you need to let it out." as he looked her, he would give her an encouraging smile and subconsciously wishing that she would just curl up to him and tell him absolutely everything. 'So she didn't have the best life out there either? I wonder if she came her to escape as well.'